Zebra
by Tiffany Blews
Summary: When you hear hoofbeats, you think horses, not zebras - Mitchie's never been one for original thinking.


He's the kind of guy that wears a leather jacket and smokes cigarettes in his old 68' Mustang.

And you're the kind of girl that falls for that sort of thing.

---

Shane Grey has 'bad boy' written all over him, from his dark, broody eyes to his cocky, arrogant smirk.

He's the wrong kind of guy, the one your mother would never approve of, and you think that maybe that's why you want him so bad. He's a book waiting to be read, a lesson waiting to be learned, and you've always been one for new experiences.

---

There's this girl named Tess Tyler, and you know that it looks like _she_ should be the one sitting next to Shane Grey right now,

She's long and lean and blonde, the complete and polar opposite of you. On the surface, she and Shane belong together, but you're diving deeper into the plot, and you know that their personalities just don't fit together. They're like Chuck and Blair from Gossip Girl; totally doomed.

What Shane really needs is someone like _you_. Someone who smiles and lives and breathes happiness, and that's just the kind of girl you are.

He needs sunshine and sugar, not midnight and vodka.

Tess Tyler watches you with a sort of certainty, like she knows something that you don't. It makes you uneasy, makes you wonder what you're not getting.

---

You've always been suspicious, always been a little cautious, so when Shane starts checking his phone every three minutes, you know something's up.

"What's wrong?"

"Huh?" He says, tearing his eyes away from his Blackberry.

"What's going on?" You shoot a pointed look at the device in his hand.

"Oh, nothing. Just waiting on a call from my producer."

You've always been suspicious, always been good at distinguishing the truth from a lie.

---

"He's cheating on me, Caitlyn."

"No, he's not. You're just being paranoid."

"Have you seen the way she looks at me? She's just - there's _something_ going on."

"Mitchie, Shane is complicated and Tess is complicated, and maybe they fit together, but he's dating _you_. Don't let your insecurities get the best of you."

You look into Caitlyn's green eyes, relaxing a little at the level of honesty she's showing you. You're not completely over it, but you feel better.

How is it that everyone around here knows so much more than you?

---

"What is her _deal_?" You ask Shane a few days later at breakfast.

"Who, Tess?"

You nod.

"She's just... Tess."

You raise an eyebrow at him.

"I can't really explain Tess Tyler to you, Mitchie."

"How long have you known her?"

"Well, we've been coming to camp together since we were twelve."

_Years_, you think.

"Did you ever date?"

He casts you a sideways glance, "Are you jealous, or something?"

"No... just curious."

He rolls his eyes, "Yeah, we did. Before Connect Three connected, two years ago."

"Oh."

"_Shit_. I gotta go. I'm teaching a class in like... five minutes ago. Bye, Mitch."

He kisses your cheek and then he's gone, leaving behind the scent of his cologne and your self-doubt.

He's not teaching a class today, that's the one thing you're sure of.

---

Later that night, after dinner, he's kissing you out by the lake.

"This is all new for me, Mitch. I care about you, you know?"

You nod yes, even though you smell apple scented perfume on his shirt (and it's definitely not yours.)

---

There are more signs; he checks his phone, stares over your shoulder, has mysterious perfume on his shirts, doesn't look you in the eye.

You _know _now; there is no denying it. You just can't bring yourself to confront him, to confront _her_. After all, you're the new girl here. You can't take on Queen Bitch and you can't break up with Prince Charming. You're stuck. You want him, God, you want him _so_ much, and you want him to yourself.

You've always been the sweet, caring girl that's a little suspicious and is good at sniffing out the truth; but you've never been all that confident.

---

"I _know_, Caitlyn. I'm sure this time."

"Mitchie, I really just - I don't think he's cheating on you."

You stare into Caitlyn's eyes again, why is she so _good_? Why isn't she an insecure mess like you?

"Maybe you're right."

---

It starts (ends) like this:

he's just went to the bathroom, leaving you and his phone in his cabin. You stare at it for a moment, trying to convince yourself not to look.

_Mitchie no! That's so wrong._

_He's cheating on you! And camp is over tomorrow! You won't see him again until next year, anyway, just do it._

Your evil side wins out, and you reach down, picking up the sleek device. You click _messages _and your fingers hovers over the button that will take you to his inbox.

_Decision time, Mitch. What's it gonna be?_

---

On the last day of camp, there's a girl that rides off into the sunset with Shane Grey, and there's a girl that's left behind.

Tess Tyler walks up to you.

"When you hear hoof beats, you think horses, not zebras." She says softly.

You look at the blonde girl, betrayal shining bright in your big, brown eyes.

"Caitlyn Gellar is a zebra."

"Exactly."

* * *

author note - weird much? i think so. if you don't get it, it means that the whole time, mitchie thought shane was cheating on her with tess, when he was really cheating on her with caitlyn. and tess is like 'when you hear hoof beats, you think horses not zebras.' because caitlyn doesn't seem like she'd be the kind of girl that would do that sort of thing, and mitchie thinks tess _would _do that. so she's completely caught off guard when the truth comes out and caitlyn is the one that shane's cheating with.


End file.
